Retaining Wall Demo/Build

/in , /by

Priorities: Permanent Solution For Failed Retaining WallChallenges: Maintain Integrity of Walls on Adjacent Properties, Safe UninstallSolutions: Methodical Tear-Out Techniques, Sequenced Install

The general contractor that built this client’s neighborhood had graded each back yard by installing a retaining wall several feet high with railroad ties.

After thirty-plus years, that structure had failed.

Our client’s 63-foot section of the wall had collapsed, creating an unsightly mess and allowing the wildflower garden they had planted above to seep through the resulting cracks.

failed railroad tie wall details

Maas Verde designed a new cut limestone block wall with a buried deluge drain pipe to permanently resolve the issue. The solution required our team to tear out the 63-foot segment without affecting the adjacent properties. The team would then build the wall to match property grade on top of a poured concrete footer.

Tear-out and construction took only two days.

failed railroad tie retaining wall (top) and rebuilt stone block wall (bottom)

Safety was a primary concern in removal, since the existing structure was tied together with rusted nine inch nails and potentially harbored ground hornets. Maas Verde cut the ties inside our client’s property line strategically, to avoid overburdening ties that were stressed beyond the fence line. Existing fence posts provide backup support for these adjacent walls.

Efficiency was key to the construction process. To seat the wall most securely, our team needed to pour the footer and lay the first course of 6” limestone blocks simultaneously. While one crew operated a mixer and shuttled loads of mixed concrete, another tooled the mixture in the trench, then laid and leveled blocks.

The first course of stones set overnight, and the team returned the next day to complete the perforated drainpipe and finish the dry-set wall. We added tie-backs for structural security, backfilled the terrace, and finished the work with topsoil for planting.

Our team also worked carefully to preserve a Baccharis shrub (B. neglecta) — a native pollinator favorite. An irrigation diagnostic and repair completed the job.

     View this post on Instagram           

 

A post shared by Maas Verde Landscape Restoration (@maasverde_atx)

Austin’s Toxic Algae is Back Again, and Synthetic Fertilizers Aren’t Helping

/in /by

We’re all used to the routine by now: As summer swelters on, huge green rafts of algae pop up all over Austin’s signature waterways. They grow and multiply until soon, the city makes an announcement: Tests have shown this blue green algae (or cyanobacteria) is toxic, and we all need to steer clear.

It’s happened each year since 2019, when several dog deaths triggered closer investigation.

To its credit, the city has since taken action to not only study the blooms, but cut them down to size. Over five years, $300,000 of taxpayer money will fund a chemical treatment applied to waters from Lake Austin to Red Bud Isle and beyond.

     View this post on Instagram           

A post shared by cbsaustin (@cbsaustin)

Its objective: Cut off algal blooms’ supply of phosphorus, and other nutrients the plants thrive on.

“Nutrients plants thrive on” — sound familiar?

It sure does to Maas Verde. Phosphorus is a major ingredient in virtually every synthetic fertilizer available.

     View this post on Instagram           

A post shared by City of Austin (@austintexasgov)

City officials have linked the algae’s recent proliferation in Lady Bird Lake to zebra mussels and climate change. But one way we can take matters into our own hands is right outside our front door.

Native and adapted plants don’t need synthetic fertilizers to live like many non-natives and turfgrasses do. And non-erosive landscapes designed around Central Texas natives like Turks cap (Malvaviscus arboreus), flame acanthus (Anisacanthus quadrifidus), and woodland sedge (Carex blanda) can root deeply to retain soil and control sedimentation.

flame acanthus (left) and Eastern sedge (right)

Plantings of flame acanthus (A. quadrifidus) and woodland sedge (C. blanda). Photo: Maas Verde

In any landscape, plants are the first line of defense against soil erosion and water runoff. In any heavy rain (or artificial drainage event such as residential irrigation), roots in the soil slow down and capture water on its way downhill toward the water table.

a graphic showing the benefits of native plant communities versus conventional turfgrass lawns

Illustration: National Wildlife Federation

For a more drought-resistant landscape that helps keep Austin’s water healthy, contact Maas Verde today.

The 5 Best Reasons To Replace Your Turfgrass with Native Plants

/in /by

Chances are, you or someone you know has spent the summer nursing shallow-rooted grasses through the deep Central Texas drought. Every time you turn the spigot on to irrigate your struggling lawn, your water bill swells up that much more.

But there’s plenty more upside to ditching your turfgrass for a native plant community. Switching to hearty, colorful natives can help the environment and yield dividends all at once.

Plant natives, save time and money, and support pollinators. Check out our top 5 reasons to ditch your grass.

1. Save Money

lawn sprinklers in the sun

All that airborne spray is money disappearing into thin air. (Or in Central Texas, really, really thick air.) Native plants need up to 80% less water than non-natives, as the City of Georgetown points out. Plant natives and slash you water bill, mow-and-blow service, and pesticide use.

2. Get Money

a woman fanning out hundred dollar bills

The City of Austin issues rebates to homeowners who convert turfgrass lawns. Take it from Maas Verde Project Manager John Harris — he claimed one himself. “You literally take a picture, fill out a form, and send it in.” Boom, $1,750.

3. Support Pollinators

a bee inside a yellow flower

Native plants provide nectar for pollinators like hummingbirds, native bees, butterflies, moths, and even bats! Without pollinators, we would lose fruits such as coffee. Yes, coffee.

4. Create a Landscape that Lasts

seeding buffalo grass

Droughts kill plants with shallow roots like St. Augustine or Fescue grass. But it only stresses natives like Buffalo grass, which can reach deeper into the soil to survive long dry spells.

5. Win Curb Appeal

a front yard garden blooming with yellow flowers

Yards pop when they’re planted with collections of vibrant, colorful native plants. The landscaping at your home or business can become a point of pride and a conversation starter.

Convert your lawn with Maas Verde today!

Want a Stronger Lawn? Then Stop Mowing and Watering So Much

/in /by

Last week, an amazing thing happened in Austin. If you were looking out the window, maybe you saw it. Or if you’re a tough customer and you were standing outside, maybe you even felt it on your skin.

It was fleeting but it happened. I wouldn’t report it if I didn’t know it, because I could barely believe it myself. And I only know it because I was there.

It rained.

grassblades with water dropletsPhoto: Sadie-Michaela Harris, WordPress

It’s great that the Austin area received scattered rain early last week. But what’s not great is that this sparse rainfall turned anyone’s head at all.

Depending on where you live in greater Austin or beyond, you’re locked in severe to extreme drought (per the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration). And there’s no end in sight. Virtually every community in the surrounding area has implemented water restrictions by this point in the summer.

The upshot is, a lot of us see flat brown lawns baking in the sun when we look out our windows. But conventional care will likely harm your grass, given this weather and these irrigation constraints.

Still, there’s good news. Maas Verde knows a simple Texas two step for stronger grass, healthier soil, and more resilient plant communities.

a blade of green grass among dead thatchLife finds a way. See the green?

Here’s how to help your grass survive the dog days.

Water Deeply

No matter what kind of grass you have, it needs deep roots to grow. Water should penetrate to a depth of six inches or more.

If you set up a hose-end sprinkler in the hottest part of the day and let it rip, water droplets will burn off in midair on their way to the ground.

That hurts your pocket, but what hurts your grass comes next. Even the water that reaches the soil won’t penetrate far before thirsty roots get to it.

Superficial watering will trigger your grass to grow shallow roots, not deep ones. And when plants experience drought stress, reaching deeper is one of their key survival adaptations.

Your grass needs some drought stress to stimulate healthy root growth.

live oaks shade grass alongside a drivewayDappled shade and tall enough grass is a recipe for success.

Water-deprived plants release a hormone called Abscisic Acid (ABA). Prolonged ABA production triggers a process that helps the plant (grass or otherwise) retain its water and seek other hydration sources.

Most grasses begin this process by changing the anatomy of their blades. Tiny pores in the blade called stomata close, and the cuticle (or blade surface) thickens. ABA then stimulates the roots to grow deeper, reaching for moisture further underground.

Cut Your Grass Tall or Leave Your Mower Parked

Grass blades are leaves; the plant can’t photosynthesize without plenty of leaf area. Cut 1/3 of the blade or less, or none at all.

If your grass looks too high, consider this: like trees, what’s above the ground mirrors what’s below. In fact, roots can account for ⅔ of a grass plant’s total biomass. You’ll want it tall if you want healthy, deep-rooted grass that retains and enriches your soil.

grass growing in a lot from bare soilTall blades do better even in poor soil.

And when you do run a machine over your yard, do the ecosystem and your wallet a favor and leave the clippings and thatch on the ground.

Thatch is that brown, dead or dormant material that can rest on top of the soil, below the green blade tips. It’s free fertilizer, and so are grass clippings.

Unless dead plant matter somehow makes it into soil, that area will lack vital nutrients. You can add nutrients back into soil either by spreading fertilizer onto it or allowing decomposition to take place on its own.

Nitrogen is the key to the process. Unless there’s plenty of this elemental gas in the soil for grass to absorb, diseases can spread, and your lawn can wither and die.

Nitrogen is a main ingredient in almost any commercial fertilizer you can buy. It also comes from thatch and grass clippings. So do other key plant nutrients like potassium and phosphates.

So why bag and trash your free sources of them?

dead grass in midsummerThatch layers promote nutrient cycling, helping grass survive even the driest months.

Maas Verde project manager and resident Master Naturalist Marc Opperman summed it up.

“There is a nutrient balance being negotiated in any plant community,” Opperman explained, adding that Maas Verde advises biodiverse alternatives to single-species lawns. “If you’re lacking nutrients like nitrogen, several adverse outcomes could result. It sets the lawn up for disease, or you could see patchiness or discoloration. On the other hand, if it’s all balanced, you’re going to have a uniform carpet of whatever species you’ve got in its full color and thickness.”

Extreme Heat Stresses Texas Trees; Our Arborists Reveal Three Top Tips

/in /by

From last winter’s damaging ice storms to this summer’s exceptional heat, we’re all experiencing unusual stress. For a lot of us humans, it’s soaring A/C bills and irritating inflation. But other species face different kinds of pressure.

For Central Texas’ trees, it’s been an especially rough year. Whether native, adapted, or otherwise, woody plant species throughout the Austin area have been showing Maas Verde’s arborists that they’re strained.

a redbud branch with one green leaf among wilted leaves

Our founder and president, Ted Maas, didn’t have to look any further than his backyard to see the latest evidence. A substantial cedar elm growing in the southeast corner of the property seemed perfectly healthy and 30-50 years old. It had survived the winter storms without visible damage.

Then under the unrelenting heat dome this July, it started to turn yellow. That initial change in color and a wilting leaf structure tipped Maas off to the tree’s stress. It was conserving water, but under strain.

a yellowing cedar elm branch overhangs a privacy fence

Maas has spent enough time in the climbing harness to identify a tree that needs special care. Though removing limbs was a last resort, it eventually became the only option to maintain public safety on the adjacent road.

Your favorite trees may also be fatigued under this year’s especially scorching Texas sun. And Maas Verde’s in-house experts are here to help them survive the long haul.

An arborist climbing a tree for trimming

With a tree care philosophy that goes beyond grooming or limbing, Maas Verde seeks to promote long-term health in each tree we work with.

‘Lifting’ Limbs

To open a canopy, we won’t just remove low limbs — we’ll look at each limb carefully, then thin it to unburden it.

“It’s usually possible to ‘lift’ a limb rather than take it out,” Maas explains. “Arborists can look for overburdened areas, stems that are growing unhealthily, or dead hangers to remove weight. Sometimes, all you need to do is lighten the load.”

The best trimmers also know how to identify what kind of cut to make depending on which one of the two classifications of limb they’re looking at: a branch, or a co-dominant stem. The two structures have radically different growth tendencies, and it’s important to cut each one the right way to promote healing.

Finally, we apply sealing paint on each live oak and red oak cut during oak wilt season to stop the spread of the fungal disease.

Ground Control

Another commonly misunderstood area of a tree is its base. Most tree species have a distinct structure that marks the bottom of the trunk and the top of the root mass. It’s called the root flare, and to the trained eye, it’s generally visible in the form of a change in bark pattern.

a grove of trees showing root flares

It’s important to understand that conditions on the ground surrounding this area is key to the tree’s health.

For instance, make sure the root flare is exposed to the air, and not covered with mulch. If your tree looks like a fencepost or stick stuck in the ground, dig it out.

As a worst case scenario, the soil can begin to mound up, meaning the tree is trying to fall down. The roots could be decomposing underground, and the tree could need re-rooting.

Various fungal growths can appear on a tree trunk. One Kretzschmaria deusta growth at the base of a hackberry, also in Maas’s backyard, indicated that the tree was likely not only strained, but dying on the spot. It was only a matter of time before it fell over, so our crews removed it promptly.

black fungus growing near a tree's base

In all installs and maintenance projects, Maas Verde works to promote tree health from the ground up.

Rooted to the (Right) Spot

If you’re starting from scratch with a brand new yard or landscape, Maas Verde can also help make sure you’ve got the right tree for your space. We prefer to work with native species and often do, but that’s only one piece of the puzzle.

A small red oak planted in a side yard

“Temperature and moisture will always be critical” to a tree’s adaptation to its specific area, Maas advises.

Different trees grow better under deep shade or full sun; thick clay or sandy loam. A nearby water source like a creek could clearly effect growth. And planting near buried gas or water lines can lead to problems later. Similarly, so can planting a tall, canopy tree under a utility line.

Finally, consider other tree species in your area. Maas Verde always promotes biodiversity, so we typically plant compatible but different species in areas with heavy populations of another specific tree.

Maas Verde remains committed to fostering long-term resource security for our clients and community. With expert plant and tree care no matter the weather, we’re here to help you and your landscape thrive.

Side Yard Overhaul with Deck, Fence, and Seating

/in , /by

Priorities: – Functional Seating – Aesthetics Match – Access For Elderly Parents
Challenges: – Heavy Shade – Compromised Deck 
Solutions: – Steel Fixtures – Shade-Tolerant Natives – Stone Walkways

This project was featured on the 2023 Austin Outdoor Living Tour

Our client approached us with a compact side yard, in need of a comfortable outdoor living area that also complemented their recently-built home. A multi-trunked live oak shaded the small space, which had minimal other plantings and a builder-grade wood deck. The overarching priority was to ease access for the client’s aging parents. 

Consultation resulted in a comprehensive landscape design that centered around enlarging the deck and adding a raised seating area executed in welded steel. The construction plan integrated carpentry for the deck expansion with custom metalwork. The landscape design surrounded the structure with steel planting boxes and trellises, while the construction team added Lueders stone pathways to connect the dots. This project seamlessly blended landscape design, construction, and carpentry to create a cohesive outdoor living space.

Right off the bat, our crew ran into trouble: extensive wood rot under the deck. Determining the structure lacked the quality and staying power we wanted to see, rebuilding it from scratch became the only option. New concrete footings, posts, joists, and decking all went in. 

The crew then installed fencing along new lines that would create more enclosed space — and open the design for the client’s pets with a hog panel-wired doggie window. A new gate completed the access plan. 

Maas Verde selected tough, shade-tolerant native plants like Webberville sedge (Carex perdentata), inland sea oats (Chasmanthium latifolium), yaupon holly (Ilex vomitoria), and turkscap (Malvaviscus arboreus) to foot the live oaks. Coral honeysuckle vines were interlaced into the trellises to soften the edges and create habitat for pollinators like honeybees and hummingbirds. To help the plants get used to their new home, Maas Verde added a simple drip irrigation system. 

Pet-Friendly Back Yard, Lighting, and Native Beds

/in , /by

Priorities: – Prolific Front Yard Beds – Dog Run in Back Yard – Shaded Outdoor Seating
Challenges: – Tricky Sunlight Conditions – Damaged Landscape
Solutions: – Light-Matched Planting – Custom Steel Edging – Resilient Surfaces

Two critical concerns for our client guided this residential project. The first was a marginal frontyard garden bed that refused to flourish — either the side in deep shade or the one in constant sunlight.

The second (and more important) was a high-energy family dog named Fargo. Or, more accurately, what Fargo had done to the back yard.

Over the years, the shepherd mix ran a deep trench into his favorite stretch of the property and had reduced a lot of his humans’ landscaping efforts to dust. The challenge was to create a stable solution that could still accommodate the vigorous pet.

In front, a new bed with robust, custom-welded 3/16” steel edging would need to trace the profile of the house and hold plants better suited to their sun exposure.

A final objective: Create a backyard seating space in the shade of a big pecan tree.

Maas Verde pulled up the existing front yard edging, designed new pattern, and sank the new material.

front yard garden beds

For Fargo’s run, we chose a bocce court filled a heavy layer of 5/8″ granite gravel. A standup limestone patio and commercial-grade low-voltage lighting framed the back yard seating area.

a stone patio

We placed native plants stragetically in the front yard beds. Turks cap (M. arboreus), sea oats (C. latifolium), and beauty berry (C. americana) went into the shady side and flame acanthus (A. quadrifidus), multiple salvia variants, and Gregg’s mistflower (C. greggii), in the sun.

As a finishing touch, Maas Verde revitalized a rear trellis where a maladapted star jasmine had died in the 2021 winter storm. Star jasmine is a non-native species that doesn’t tolerate cold weather especially well, and can be water-consumptive.

a gravel dog run

Instead, Maas Verde installed coral honeysuckle — a native climber that attracts pollinators with its beautiful red fluted flowers.

Rain Capture Sanctuary

/in , /by

Priorities: Rainwater Catchment – Outdoor Seating – Native Plantings
Challenges: Expansive Grass Lawn
Solutions: Channel Rainwater to Cistern and Rain Garden – Install Patio – Terrace and Grade Area

This cistern, rain garden, and patio project functioned as an example of mutual inspiration. Maas Verde’s nature-centric client helped us reframe our own thinking about rain gardens. And in turn, we helped her vision become a lush, rain-collecting, native planted reality.

A small shady spot below a tall pecan tree overlooked a gently sloping turfgrass lawn. It was a natural seating area, and the install would revolve around it.  

The plan incorporated a 20’ x 10’ rain garden swale with berms, native karst limestone boulders, a 1,000-gallon galvanized cistern, and 317 native plants representing 17 species. This and a honed limestone patio would partially replace the Zoysia grass lawn. Advantageously, we were able to repurpose some materials from the site: ¼” steel edging, and part of a limestone block wall encircling the tree.

Maas Verde built an 8’ x 8’ CMU (concrete masonry unit) pad for the cistern to stand on. To match the block walls to the house foundation, the crew finished the surfaces with stucco. A 5-foot pony wall helps divide it from the side yard. And a galvanized pipe trellis help screen and cool the tank, once native coral honeysuckle plantings establish.

The rainwater catchment system works via collection and cascade. First, piping funnels rainwater from the roof into the tank. When the tank overflows, it disperses into the rain garden below. Finally, a gentle channel cut into the garden and adjacent limestone wall allows any water still moving downhill into the lawn. 

The system handles a surprising capacity of water. Together, the cistern and garden can hold 1,980 gallons. That’s enough to fill about 45 bathtubs to the brim. In a 1” rain event, the client’s roof would collect 840 gallons of rainwater.

Maas Verde’s system only needs to capture a fraction of that to sustain its hearty native plantings. The outdoor seating component adds novel functionality to the space.

“Most people don’t think of rain gardens as landscapes that are particularly geared toward humans. They’re considered more like ecologically-focused elements than practical spaces for people to hang out,” Maas Verde project manager John Harris explained. “But this design proved, any rain garden can be both at the same time.”

Preschool Playground Refresh and Reconfigure

/in , /by

Project Description:

This North Austin Preschool wanted to redesign and refresh the landscape around their playground. The old playground had rotting timber log borders and uneven loose gravel. Maas Verde was called in to redesign the layout of the landscape using new cedar logs and refreshing most of the area with kid-friendly mulch for safety.

The work consisted on removing a spiral feature on the existing play set, removing, and disposing of existing wood border, replacing wood border with cedar logs and bringing the borders inward by a couple feet, creating two gravel islands; one for the swing set and one for the play set area and mulching the areas around the cedar log border and in the play area adjacent to the swing set.

Clarksville

/in , /by

Project Description:

This client engaged Maas Verde to construct a retaining wall to raise and level his Central Austin front yard. The existing yard sloped severely downhill and left very little useable flat space. With its commanding view of downtown, the house is often the scene of community fundraising parties, yet the slope limited the usability. In keeping with the 1930s character of the neighborhood, we constructed about 90 linear feet of “bric-a-brac” wall using a combination of natural and reclaimed stone, and found objects, including oyster shells and native fossils.  We included a prominent set of stone steps. Hidden in the construction are steel deadmen and stakes to hold the wall in place, as well as a French drain to prevent water build up.

After all the masonry was completed, we leveled the yard with high-quality landscape soil and laid 2 pallets of Zoysia sod. We also rebuild a small screening fence at the property’s edge. An unusual challenge was the presence of an outflow pipe connecting to the basement sump-pump of the house. At fairly regular intervals, the pump would empty the sump into the area of our project. We rerouted the outflow (and French drain) to pop out unobtrusively near the street side stone landing.